Multiple-stage separation techniques may result in higher purities of solid products, but may require substantially more investment in equipment. One method to reduce capital expenditures in a multi-stage separation is through the use of a rotary pressure filter. Rotary pressure filter have been designed to perform more than one of the steps of a multiple-stage separation technique in a single piece of equipment. For example, known rotary pressure filters perform a filtration to form a filter cake, followed by a washing of the filter cake. The washed filter cake is then dried before leaving the rotary pressure filter.
Despite these advancements, there continues to be a need to produce highly effective solid-liquid separations while reducing capital expenditures and variable costs for such processes.